Babysitting
by xLosersRuleTheWorldx
Summary: When an experiment goes wrong, Ratchet has to watch over a sparkling Optimus for a little bit, which doesn't go as smoothly as planned.


Ratchet had never been so pissed off with his teammates in his life and his teammates had never been more terrified of his wrath. He was practically screaming at them and the humans for messing with his medical tools. The medic had a few trinkets that he never wanted anyone to touch, not even him due to their instability. Now, because Miko had been playing with his things, they accidently fired off his age ray… which ended hitting Optimus right in the back, turning him from the great Autobot leader to a sparkling that was Rafael's size with a five year old childish mentality.

He had kicked everyone out of the base so he could work on his gun in peace. He was no weapons specialist, but he knew how to construct certain gadgets, something he had picked up from his friends back before the war. He was in his quarters with the now sparkling Optimus sitting on the floor, making little coo noises as he played with some old pieces of machinery Ratchet didn't use or need anymore.

The medic huffed. Optimus was a quiet sparkling and didn't bother Ratchet too much, thank Primus. He was just like if he were Optimus Prime the great leader, but smaller and unable to speak. Well, he could speak – the sentences were just broken ones. But Ratchet noticed how things had gotten too quiet - too quiet for even a calm sparkling like Optimus - which caused him to turn around to look at the now child-like leader. His optics widened in horror when he realized Optimus was gone; he must have wandered out of the room since he had been so engrossed in trying to find a way to reverse the aging ray.

"Optimus?!" he called out, looking around anxiously for the sparkling.

The little mech failed to respond, which drove Ratchet to sudden panic. Primus, if something were to happen to him, he would first kill Miko for messing with his things and causing Optimus to become the way he was at the moment. Then he would murder his teammates for not keeping an optic on their damn charges, Bulkhead especially. Miko was his charge and he should've been watching her! Not letting her do whatever the hell she wanted! And if Optimus didn't get hurt, Ratchet would hit him hard for wandering off like that.

"Optimus?" he yelled out again.

Still nothing, which caused Ratchet to groan in irritation. A hint of fear crawled into his spark as he thought about just where the sparkling may have wandered off to. It wasn't as if every place in the base was safe. The rafters surely weren't safe for someone of Optimus size (at the moment, anyway). He could seriously hurt himself. There were also some electric wirings that still needed fixing and Ratchet could only imagine the horror of Optimus going near it. Sparklings were curious by nature and, as the human phrase went, curiosity killed the cat.

There was a loud and unnerving crash at the end of the hallway. Ratchet froze, dreading to know what the sound was. From the echo, it sounded like it came from the human kitchen the base had. Until recently, it had been abandoned and unused. Of course, that changed once Jack and the other humans started coming over more often. Food had to be provided for them and the kitchen was the perfect place to store human foods.

And it was also the most dangerous, considering all the tools and machinery that could be seen as hazardous. Ratchet ran toward the sound, spark clenching in fear. Optimus was a smart mech – he knew this – but now he was just a sparkling, curious and looking to discover "new" things; these things were most likely to get him killed.

He was glad that the entrance to the kitchen was enormous or he wouldn't have been able to get in. He forced his way inside, panicking as he looked around the area, trying to find his leader. He turned the corner, stopping in his tracks at the sight before him.

Much to his relief, Optimus was perfectly unharmed. Ratchet wished he could say the same thing for the floor and his paintjob. Whoever had been in here last, which Ratchet assumed was Miko since there was also paint and paintbrushes on the counter (and floor), had left the big bag of all-purpose flour out in the open for anyone to grab. Optimus must have reached up for it because the bag was now on the floor and flour covered him completely. The sparkling also much have tried to reach for the green, blue, and yellow paints because along with the flour, he had those three color all over his frame.

"Ratchet?" the young mech said, looking up at him with his helm titled a bit.

The medic frowned and marched over to the sparkling, smacking him over the head once. The young Optimus gave out a sharp yelp of pain and shock, looking up at the red and white bot with confusion. Ratchet crouched down and growled, "Damn it, Optimus – do _not_ go wandering off like that. The last thing I need is you missing a limb and having to repair it."

Optimus nodded, rubbing where Ratchet had hit him. "Sorry…"

The bigger Autobot reached to bit him up, but hesitated. He was covered in flour and paint – did he really want that on his own armor? He knew he'd have to clean Optimus now or the flour and paint would stick and stain (which would be a pain in the aft to get off), which meant he would get washed himself… Damn it.

He picked up the sparkling and held up against his chassis, wincing a bit as the human food and fluid got over his armor. He ignored it though, carrying Optimus down the hall and over to the wash rack. Luckily for him, the little mech wasn't squirming and sat in his arms patiently. Primus, how he wished Optimus would have just stayed quiet like this and hadn't have wandered off. Now they both needed to be cleaned.

He set him down on the floor, turning on the water and taking out some scrubbing soap for the both of them. Just as he sprayed the water on Optimus, he gave out a childish shriek. The shriek turned into a laugh as he squirmed while Ratchet held him, the water coming over his frame.

Ratchet groaned in annoyance. "Stand still!"

Primus, he couldn't believe this was how Optimus acted when he was sparkling. Sure, he wasn't always the way he was when he became a Prime, but he didn't expect him to be so giddy and jumpy. Still, it reminded him of what Cybertron once was, what Optimus once was. Every day he missed it, but he understood the situation now. Cybertron was dead and there was a war. Nothing could change that. Still, seeing a sparkling as energetic as this did bring back pleasant prior-war thoughts.

He couldn't help but to shake his him and laugh a little. "You're much more emotional and relax when you have this mentality. Weird, but not unappreciated."

Optimus smiled and, being a little mischievous, grabbed the hose from Ratchet and pointed it his face and chassis. He gave out a yelp as water splashed in his optics and chassis. Though it did get the flour and paint off, he hadn't been expecting it and was too stunned to react. Optimus just laughed.

And Ratchet couldn't help but to chuckle too.

XXX

After taking a longer wash than wanted, both Ratchet and Optimus had cleaned themselves up nicely. He couldn't say the same thing for the kitchen though. It looked like a tornado had gone through it, as the human expression went. He was planning on cleaning it up, but he was too wrapped up in fixing the aging ray. That and when Ratchet sat down, Optimus decided to sit in his lap and watch him before eventually falling asleep right then and there.

The medic didn't seem to mind it entirely. At least he could keep an optic on the youngling that way and knew where he was at all times. Besides, it wasn't like he was in the way. He was being quiet, which allowed him to work in peace.

He looked down at the sleeping leader. He had seen a lot of sides to Optimus (though he was a sparkling, so it was a bit excused) that he hadn't seen in a long time. It was kind of sweet in a way. Ratchet had a feeling that Optimus would be grateful that the others didn't behave so mischievously when he was back to his original size and mind-frame. The others would never let him live it down.

"Ratchet…" the sparkling cooed in his sleep, snuggling up in his lap.

Almost subconsciously, Ratchet laid down a servo over the sparkling's helm, stroking over it. Though he knew it was impractical and stupid, he somewhat wished that Optimus could stay like this. He certainly seemed to loosen up and enjoy himself, unlike how he always was on high alert and proper. But Ratchet understood that wishful thinking was meant to stay wishful, not factual. His aging ray had been fixed, meaning he could turn Optimus back into his normal self.

He looked down at the youngling in his lap, who was still dead in recharge. Well, he could turn him back once he woke up. It had been a long day.

XXX

"So, you're all back to normal now?" Arcee asked with her servo resting at her hip, the other one simply hanging by her side as she gazed up at her leader. She and the others had taken their human charges home, knowing that Ratchet probably didn't want to see them (Miko especially) since they had been responsible for making him so angry earlier.

The Prime nodded. "Ratchet was able to reverse the effect of the weapon and turn me back to normal. He ran a few tests to make sure my vitals were stable and they were."

Ratchet rolled his optics. "You're lucky everything _was_ fine. Primus only knows what may have happened something had gone wrong."

Optimus gave a soft smile at his old friend. Though gruff, he and the others had learned long ago that the more the medic scolded you, the more he cared about your well being.

"So, Ratchet," the femme said, turning to him. "How was babysitting a sparkling like Optimus? Must have been easy for you."

Ratchet and Optimus exchanged glanced with one another. They had failed to mention and clean up the mess in the human kitchen, something that they would probably have to do later. Also, the paint had taken forever to get off their armor. Optimus was pretty sure that he still had some flour inside his circuits somewhere. His immature and childish side wasn't something he really wanted to tell his teammates, though he had an excuse as he had been changed into a sparkling.

Ratchet knew this too. It wasn't Optimus's fault that he had become a sparkling. It simply happened. The medic huffed and looked over the Prime a bit more before turning back to Arcee, shrugging a bit.

"Yeah… I guess it was."


End file.
